About Mr. Calabrese
🏠 Growing Up in South Philly
As a child, I was raised in South Philadelphia. For the first couple of years, I lived in my grandparents’ row home. At the time, it was Grandmom, Granddad, my godfather Vincent, my brother Joe and me, and Mom and Dad. It was the quintessential Italian family, growing up in a great Italian neighborhood.
After a few years, we eventually moved into our own row home, and I had a great childhood.
🏈 Perrysburg High School Days
After growing up in Philly, my father moved us to a small town in Ohio called Perrysburg during my freshman year of high school. I played football and ran track all four years. I wasn’t the best at track, but I stuck with it. As for football, my teammates and I eventually ended up in our high school Hall of Fame. The small town was a big change from the city of Philly, but I totally enjoyed it. I still have many good friends from high school who have given me a lot of support in this challenge.
🎓 Life at Miami University
After high school, I was accepted to Miami University of Ohio and graduated in four years. During my time there, I became a member of the Alpha Tau Omega fraternity and still have many friends from the brotherhood. I was elected house manager for two years in a row and helped guide the house forward. I was also elected Marketing Director and later Vice President of the Campus Activities Council. Our group was in charge of all live events on campus, which taught me how to work with all types of individuals to get projects done.
💼 Retail & Sales Career
After graduating, I went to work for Macy’s in the Northeast. It was a great experience that taught me how to manage various people. After that, I moved to San Francisco and became a regional sales representative for Bosch. For four and a half years, I learned how to manage my time and successfully sell factory automation equipment and robotics to the computer industry.
🍽️ An Entrepreneur
Then I got a call from one of my good friends from high school. We had made a pact to open a restaurant together by the time we were 30. We started the store in 1993, and after 22 years, we ended up with three stores in Tallahassee, Florida. Being the Vice President of Operations and very hands-on taught me many ways to deal with and motivate college kids. This was also the time I grew to become more politically motivated. I came to understand the operation of a small business and the challenges of dealing with the government.
🏛️ A New Mission
Since owning my own business, I’ve been employed by two large corporations and have begun to see the overreach of the government. This is one of the many reasons I’m taking on this challenge. I hope to help reduce some of this overreach that affects all of us as citizens and business owners alike.
